Method of and apparatus for casting on loops on flat knitting machines



Aprifl 16, 1935. w, HEINITZ 1,998,368

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING ON LOOPS ON FLAT KNITTING MACHINES Filed Aug. 1, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet l I77 V6/7L071' Waldemar Heinflz April 16, 1935. w HEINITZ 1,998,368

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING 0N nooPs ON FLAT KNITTING MACHINES Filed Aug. 1, 1931 4Sheets-Sheet 2 VVoldemar Heiniiz I W I April 16, 1935. w HEI'NITZ 1,998,368

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING ON LOOPS ON FLAT KNITTING MACHINES Filed Aug. 1, 1931 4 Sheets-Shet v 4 wqy [Wren/02":

woldelrml fieimiz Patented Apr. 16, 1935 i i I v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING ON LOOPS ON FLAT KNITTING MACHINES Woldemar Heinitz, Chemnitz, Germany, assignor to Schubert & Salzer Maschinenfabrik, Aktiengesellschaft, Chemnitz, Germany Application August 1, 1931, Serial No. 554,549 In Germany August 1, 1930 Claims. (Cl. 6H9) My invention relates to method of and appabar which is mounted to slide in the frame 21, ratus for casting on loops on flat knitting ma- I9 is a rod on the bar, and 20 is a fork at the chines. It is an object of my invention to obinner end of the rod which engages in the boss tain strong selvedge loops without waste of of the roller l6. By shifting the bar I8 the roller 5 thread. I6 is alternately moved into active position to the 5 To this end the thread in the casting-on opcam 22 and the disc 23. 24 is a downward exeration is put to the penultimate needle of the tension of the rocking lever l4 and 25 is a screw loops to be cast on and then formed into-a firm in the lower end of the extension 24 which serves selvedge loop round the last needle. as an abutment against the bar 28 for limiting This is effected by deflecting the penultimate the movement of the lever 14 with respect to 10 needle from the locking-in position when the the cam 22. needle is raised for putting the thread to it. By 12, i2 are arms or cranks on the shaft l3, 6 these means the thread is brought to lie unsunk is a shaft which is mounted in suitable bearings on the hook side of the penultimateneedle and 5 on the upp bar ale arms cranks 5 on the opposite side of the last needle. ranged on the shaft, and H are connecting rods On account of this position of the thread on extending from the arms or cranks l2 on the the penultimate needle an unsunk loop is formed shaft I! to the arms or cranks ID on the shaft 6. which, like the sunk loops of the other needles, It will. appear that when the bar i8 is shifted is knocked over when the next row of loops is to move the roller it into active position with formed. However, as the length of the thread sp t to t cam 22 on e shaft 2|, t lever 20 in e unsunk loops is less than in the sunk loops, ll is rocked and its rocking movement is comfirm selvedge loops are formed without surplus municated to the shaft 6 by the mechanism dethread. scribed. The extent to which the lever ll follows In the drawings aflixed to this specification the cam 22 in downward direction is determined and forming part thereof a machine in which by adjusting the screw 25. 25

my method may be performed. and various stages Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4, I are sets of of operation are illustrated diagrammatically by pr ss r ba s th p t of w h h sp way of example. to the arms or cranks l0 on the shaft 6 is indi- In the drawings cated in Fig. l, and 2 are pressers for cooperating Fig. 1 is a partly sectional elevation showing with the needles I. Lis a slotted bracket in 30 part of a flat knitting machine, which the presser bars I are mounted to slide.

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 11-11 in Fig. l, I is a notch in each presser bar, and 9 is an arm Figs. 3 and 4 are details showing the mechaon the shaft 6 which engages the notch. 3 are nism for operating the pressers, in two positions, the sinkers which are also mounted to slide in as drawn to a larger scale andin section, the bracket 4.

Figs. 5 to 7 are diagrams showing the position Referring now to Fig. 5, when it is desired to of the needles, cast on a selvedge loop the corresponding thread Figs. 8 to 12 are diagrams showing various guide is moved beyond the needle a at the selstages in the knitting of a fabric, and vedge for two more needles b and c. When the Fig. 13 shows a finished fabric. needles are in their lowest position the penulti- 40' Referring now to the drawings, and first to mate needle b is bent out of its normal position Figs. 1 and 2, 211st. frame of the machine, with by t advancin p ss r a 1 wh h lan upper longitudinal beam 28 and a lower lonvedge needle a and the last needle c remain in gitudinal beam 28. Mounted on the upper beam their normal. position. When the'needles are 26 is a support 29 for the thread guide rails 30 raised the newly la d thread 32 is Placed 011 the 45 and 3| is one of the thread guides partly broken hook side of the penult m needle in floa in away. condition. When the needles have almost com- 2i is a cam shaft in the frame 21, 22 is a cam ple d h r upward Stroke the needle b is and 23 is a circular disc on the shaft, I3 is a s d y its Presser and Dresser and allowed shaft at the rear of the frame, which extends to return into its n rmal position as shown in 0 in parallel to the crank shaft 2|, I4 is a rocking Fig. '1. In the. uppe na position of all needles leveron the shaft I 3, i5 is a pin at the free end the thread 32 is positioned on the needle I: at the of the rocking lever I4, I6 is a roller adapted tosame side as on the selvedge needle a andis cooperate with the cam 22 and the disc 23, which placed about the needle 0 in unsunk condition. 5

roller is mounted to slide on the pin I5, I! is a Fig. 8 is a perspective illustration showing the 5 -tinued in the usual manner, Fig. 11.

position of four needles including the needles b, c after the thread guide has moved on to the left for beginning a new row of loops. When this sunk thread has been locked in hooks of the descending needles, as shown in Fig. 9, and when it is knocked off, there are loops on all needles in row VI, Fig. 10, and the knitting is now con- As will appear from Fig. 12, the forming of the selvedge loops on the penultimate needle b is improved by avoiding an unduly large pre-sunk loop, and at the same time the selvedge loops also draw tight sooner.

The flnished fabric is shown in Fig. 13.

The device for deflecting the needles i acts as follows:

If loops are to be cast-on, the bar I8 is moved to the left so that the roller I6 is placed. opposite the cam 22, whereupon the shaft 6 is actuated in the manner described.

A presser bar 1 is arranged in front of each second presser 2 so that each second needle I is deflected from its normal position by the corresponding presser bar 'I and presser 2. By this deflection of the. needles I the thread is positioned on the needles in the manner desired.

For casting-on loops one needle only is to be deflected at each side of the fabric. The deflection of the other needles has no influence whatever upon the knitting process. As the presser bars 1 are, as shown in Fig. l, at both sides of the knitting machine in" a width corresponding to the desired widening of the fabric only, the flrst presser bar alone will act as a rule in the flrst instance. The deflection of the needles out-- side the fabric has no influence whatever as after the return of the presser bars the needles I return into their original position. At each successive casting-on the next presser bar comes, with regard to the penultimate needle of the fabric, into a position adapted to effect castingon. Then the deflected needles within the body of the fabric remain without influence as they are returned into their original position at the next sinking operation. I claim: v

1. The method of casting on loops on 'flat knitting machines comprising putting the thread without sinking to the penultimate needle in the row in which a loop is cast on by deflecting the needle from its locking-in position as it rises, and laying the thread around the last needle as -a selvedge loop with the thread lying on the hook side of the penultimate, and on the opposite side of the last needle.

2. An apparatus for casting on loops on flat knitting machines, comprising needles, a movable presser for each of said needles, a slotted bracket extending across the entire width of the machine, sinkers adapted to slide in said bracket, presser bars one in front of each second presser also adapted to slide in said bracket and arranged in two groups, one at each end of the needle bank, and means for selectively operating said presser bars to deflect said pressers and thereby said needles during upward movement- 3. An apparatus for casting on loops on flat knitting machines, comprising needles. a movable presser for each of said needles, a slotted bracket extending across the entire width of the machine, sinkers adapted to slide in said bracket, presser bars one in front of each second presser also adapted to slide in said bracket and arranged in two groups, one at each end of the ,needle bank, a rocking shaft mounted above said bracket, arms flxed to said rocking shaft and engageable with said presser bars, cranks fixed on said rocking shaft, a second rocking shaft mounted'in the frame of the machine, links connecting said cranks and said second rocking shaft, a driving shaft also mounted in the frame of said machine and means for translating the rotation of said driving shaft into rocking movement of said second rocking shaft.

4. An apparatus for casting on loops on flat knitting machines, comprising needles, a movable presser for each of said needles, a slotted bracket extending across the entire width of the machine, sinkers adapted to slide in said bracket,

presser bars one in front of each second presser also adapted to slide in said bracket and arranged in two groups, one at each end of the needle bank, a rocking shaft mounted above said bracket, arms flxed to said rocking shaft and engageable with said presser bars, cranks fixed on said rocking shaft, a second rocking shaft mounted in the frame of the machine, links connecting said cranks to said second rocking shaft, a driving shaft also mounted in the frame of the machine, a cam on said driving shaft, a circular disk mounted on said driving shaft at the side of said cam, a lever flxed to said second rocking shaft, and having a depending arm carrying an ,adjusting screw, a pin carried by said lever, a roller slidably arranged on said pin, and means for moving said roller alternately into registering position with respect to said cam and said disk.

5. An apparatus for casting on loops on flat knitting machines, comprising needles, a movable presser for each of said needles, a slotted bracket extending across the entire width of the machine, sinkers adapted to slide in said bracket, presser bars one in front of each second presser also adapted to slide in said bracket and ar-' ranged in two groups, one at each end of the needle bank, a rocking shaft mounted above said bracket, arms 'flxed to said rocking shaft and engageable with said presser bars, cranks flxed on said rocking shaft, a second rocking shaft mounted in the frame of the machine. links connecting said cranks to said second rocking shaft, a driving shaft also mounted in the frame of the machine, a cam on said driving shaft, a circular disk mounted on said driving shaft at the side of said cam, a lever fixed to said second rocking shaft and having a depending arm carrying an adjusting screw, a pin carried by said lever, a roller slidably arranged on said pin, a shaft slidably arranged in the frame of the machine, a lever arm flxed on said slidable shaft, and a fork at the free end of said lever arm adapted to 

